Thursday, June 30, 2011

Emilia ClarkeI've started watching Game of Thrones and have been quite impressed all around with it. Great show with great acting and beautiful ladies such as Ms Clarke. She is very new to the acting world and was actually a replacement for another actress on Thrones when that one dropped out and I am more grateful with every watching. Going nude in the first episode also didn't hurt. Now I just need to figure out how to make an invitation go back in time...

Wednesday, June 29, 2011

Ultimate X #5 - What Is Ultimate X?It took Ultimate X 16 months to put out their full, 5-issue story. Since then, Marvel has announced that there will be a new Ultimate Comics X-Men book in a few months so who knows how much this story actually means anymore but that doesn't take away from the great concept that this title set up.We begin the issue with Jimmy (Wolverine's son) not being able to buy alcohol and then being almost killed by Sabretooth (I'm sure Wolverine would consider the former to be the worse). Quickly as it started, Sabretooth suddenly disappears. Not sure they are trying to make it secret, but it's pretty obviouse that it's by Quicksilver. While waiting to see if Jimmy will fully heal, the other "X-Men" want revenge but know they don't stand a chance. That's when Karen/Jean has the idea of adding some muscle. She is able to find Bruce Banner and help him control the Hulk as he beats the living crap outta Sabretooth. Again, Quicksilver zooms in and takes him out. From there it becomes a matter of arguing principles between Karen/Jean and Quicksilver. They part ways knowing that they are both wanting the same thing, just different ways (a bit familiar to anyone who knows X-Men). The group now sits around trying to figure out what to do when Karen/Jean finally reveals the secret man behind helping her finding everyone: Nick Fury. Not being happy with the mutant situation, he is trying to help them make it right, under the radar. As Karen/Jean puts it,"We are not a team. There is no school. No uniforms. There will be no X-Men. We will train and learn in the field. As long as the Mutant Registration Act is enforced, anyone with a gift is in jeopardy. We can go where others can't. Where others won't. We don't have borders. We'll change identities as needed. We are here to fight for anyone who can't."Now, with this book being so late, I'm not sure if this concept will be the same in the new X-Men book (apparently she was wrong and there will be X-Men) but this story was pretty awesome on it's own. Nothing amazingly new or original but another cool step for an Ultimate version of a long told story. I would like to see the new book keep the concept of a covert team. Like the A Team without the pay. That would be cool. Alas, only time will tell. But I'll be there to find out what happens.

Wednesday, June 22, 2011

Ultimate Spider-Man #160 - The Death of Spider-Man: ConclusionI'm fairly certain most people don't read comics anymore but just in case you do, there are definite spoilers aheadWe left Spidey last issue bleeding out and collapsing into May's arms with Goblin coming to and standing over them both.We start this issue with a quick spread of MJ trying to leave to the mess to find out if Pete is ok, her mother telling her that she can see her boyfriend tomorrow. Cut back to Pete able to swing Gqen and May out of the Goblin's way. He tries to force them to leave so that they are not hurt but we know that won't actually happen. He goes back and starts hammering it out with Goblin. At some point, he is able to wake Torch up but all his fire does is super charge Goblin. As he continues slugging it out, he falls on his knees, not sure if he can keep fighting. It at that moment that MJ drives a moving van into Goblin. After Pete throws her into a web for safety and proceeds to smash the truck into Goblin until in explodes, sending him flying backwards. As he lays on the ground, MJ runs up to him, begging for somebody to call an ambulance. May and Gwen then come running in, yelling for help also. As May bends down to him, a calm Peter starts tearing, saying to her,"I couldn't save him. Uncle Ben. I couldn't save him... No matter what I did. But I saved you. I did it. I did..."With that, his body goes limp. Johnny Storm runs in, checking for a heartbeat and not finding it. As MJ hold his lifeless body, we are left with everyone crying, and a fiery body of Norman Osborn slowly grinningWell, they told us it would happen. They called the story "The Death of Spider-Man". They seemingly killed him. I mean, yeah there wasn't a funeral or anything yet but they are officially saying that he is dead now. They are not saying who the new one will be yet, but they are moving on with it.I very much enjoyed this story. Bendis on Spider-Man has been on of the best choices Marvel has made over the last decade and I'm on board for whatever he does with him. It's really that simple for me. I liked this Peter a lot and I don't know how another person will do but I'm certainly getting it and reading where it goes.

Monday, June 20, 2011

What happens when you take the move Taken, replace Liam Neeson with a younger, Asian man, replace the daughter with a little neighbor girl and add a lot more violence? You get the amazingly badass movie The Man From Nowhere.I watched this movie last night and I was blown away. The story is an easy one to follow. A lone pawnshop owner is thought to be part of a drug run gone bad, when the lady responsible pawns the bag that she is hiding the drugs in. Her daughter, with whom Pawnshop has kinda taken to watching over, is taken as leverage and the drug dudes find out that Pawnshop is the wrong man to mess with, as he sets out to find the girl and take out the bad guys for good.It's easy to make a comparison to Taken simply because of the "I'll find you" premise but this movie is on a whole other level. I am a big fan of Asian cinema (and foreign movies in general) and this is just another example of why. They have a way of making awesome action movies that can incorporate character and drama. Here in America, it feels like a lot of action flicks just blow shit up and are loud. Much as I do love that, I will gladly take a great Asian action flick over an American most any day.The acting was amazing. The action was great. There's a knife fight towards the end that may be one of the best I have seen in any movie. I absolutely say you should see this movie. Brilliant film making and completely worth your two hours.

Sunday, June 19, 2011

Sofia VergaraMy boss Debi finally talked me into watching the show Modern Family and I freely admit that I am a bit disappointed in myself for bad-mouthing it so much. Its pretty damn hilarious. And the one person everyone seems to be talking about from it is the luscious Ms Vergara. All woman and all hot. I know I'm late to her party, but I still hope she says yes to my invite.

Saturday, June 18, 2011

I think at this point, most everyone is aware of Lantern's premise. Guy is chosen, guy looks hot, girl likes guy, alien hates guy, guy fights for alien, blah blah blah. I'll try to not repeat what smarter people have said better than I would.First and foremost, I really liked this movie. Don't let anything I say after this tell you otherwise.My bad: We all saw that first trailer and cringed. There was a bit too much Cornball Reynolds for my version of Hal Jordan. And on that train, there was quite a bit of cheese dialogue throughout the whole movie in general. Visually, everything looked quite amazing but the end battle was very lackluster. Very short, very simple. Get in and get out. I wanted a lot of shit flying around and blowing up. Epic standoffs that give me giant NBs for at least the last twenty minutes.However, I can chalk almost all of that up to "making a movie for people other than comic geeks". Things have to appeal to an audience of... well, everyone. If a pure comic movie was made, nobody but us geeks would see it and that would mean a lot of lost money for studios. I get that. Reynolds a an a-list actor who brings with him an audience who may not have seen Lantern otherwise. I myself would go gay for him in a heartbeat (if not for that damn restraining order). When ya get Reynolds, ya get his cornball acting. When you throw him into a love interest story, you have to take cheese and campy dialogue with it. I get that. I may not have liked it, but it's how you take Green Lantern the comic and make it into Green Lantern the movie.My Good: Ryan Reynolds. Did I mention my profound love for him? Even through his cheesy, Reynolds still pulled off Hal. Great job of mixing the two together (as Adam and Ken both already said). And Peter Sarsgaard was brilliant was Hammond.And I may be pissing a few people off but I loved the different take of Parallax. I don't want to ruin it for anyone who may not have seen it yet but the new way they tied him to the Green Lantern Corps was very impressive and it worked perfectly for putting Hammond into place. Very smart writing.I would absolutely recommend you see this movie if you haven't yet. While I did leave a little disappointed (I had some amazingly high hopes), I was still very impressed. Not as good as X-Men or Thor but the critics can suck one cuz this movie was damn cool.

Wednesday, June 15, 2011

Flashpoint: Wonder Woman and the Furies #1 (of 3)As Flashpoint rages on, we get another batch of "tie-in" minis. Of this crop, I was actually pretty interested in the WW story. With her taking part6 of Europe as New ThemyScira and being at war with Atlantis AND this mini being written by Abnett & Lanning, I was in and it was totally worth it.Fourteen years ago, young Diana of Themyscira was curious and boated away from the island to see what they world help. Sadly, it help a baby Kraken that also attacked her. Saved by a young Atlantean named Arthur, she was taken back to Atlantis where he helped save her from the point the sea monster had injected into her. One month later, as the two secret nations came together, Young Diana and young Arthur announced they were to wed and that the whole world would know that they exist. Thirteen years later, on the day of their wedding, Arthur's ward, Garth, is unwilling to show at the wedding. As Diana's mother, Queen Hippolyta is ready to wed the two as an Atlantean guard appears in a balcony. With a shove to save her life, Queen Hippolyta knocks Diana out of the way and is speared with a triton, killing her. As we chase after the killer, they are confronted by Garth, revealing that the killer in the Amazon Artemis. After a fight, she hands him over, claiming he is the murderer. The Wedding is off the the Atlanteans are told to leave before more bloodshed is caused. We end our issue with Artemis making claim that even though Diana was not killed as intended, the Queen's death still served the same purpose. Their part was done and that now the rest was up to Arthur's brother, Orm.I'm going to leave out my love for Abnett & Lanning. I think at this point, everyone knows that I think they are amazing writers. This story was awesome. There was a lot of detail in a small book. It almost feels like there was too much and yet you follow every little piece of it. It was a very Shakespearean story of two cross-lovers who's family will stop at nothing to make sure they never stay together. I'm real excited to see who this plays out of regular Flashpoint. I almost hope that by the end, Aquaman and WW find out that they were both pawns in this bigger plot and they they turn on their own people. As with everything with DC and Flashpoint right now, all I can do is wait.

Sunday, June 12, 2011

I had a dream last night that made no sense. First, I was running around a shopping center as some sort of terrorist cell was trying to attack. I think I was trying to help stop them but I'm not sure because things stopped mattering after I saw that Chase's parents (yes, the Chase that used to work at the comic shop with me) were taking all of the ipads that we needed. That turned into a whole thing and then I ended up home. After being there, the backyard started being destroyed. My father had made some sort of shade-doohickeys and they were falling down and some sort of blackhole opened or something. It had to do with Thor and Odin and I ran out back and started jamming my arm into the ground, somehow mixing it. Trying to counteract whatever was going on.And that's when I woke up. Made no sense to me and I doubt it ever will.

Saturday, June 11, 2011

Andrea AndersAs I watch more and more Better Off Ted, I come to find the character of Linda more and more hot. Smart, witty, a little dirty. A chick I could find myself wanting to be around. And for some reason, I love the little bit of "gruff" Miss Anders has in her voice (check out the show and you'll see many examples of all). She may not have the largest love lumps around but boy does she know how to use 'em. I only hope that she rsvp's once she read the invitation.

Friday, June 10, 2011

DC revealed the last titles of their reboot and they also happen to be their biggest icon: Superman. Scot Lobdell is doing Superboy, Michael Green and Mike Johnson are writing Supergirl and George Perez is writing Superman: the Man of Tomorrow. Not bad but nothing great.But everything looked brighter when I saw who was writing Action Comics. Grant Mother-f-ing Morrison! Now, I know he's been crapping all over Batman over the last years but this is the same dude who wrote All-Star Superman and if you have ever read those twelve issues, you know that Morrison on Superman can be absolutely brilliant! All-Star may arguably be the best Superman story out there. Throw in a "reboot" of the character and you pretty much have another clean slate to do with as he pleases. Azzarello on Wonder Woman was the book I was most looking forward to until this one. I shall keep my fingers crossed and hope it doesn't turn into another Batman mess.(MoT shows Supes in an actual costume so I assume he will not be farming jeans the duration of Action)

Thursday, June 9, 2011

I saw two awesome pics today that totally got me geekin' out. Stare in awe with me.The first is the new Suicide Squad book from DC. Not sure I will be buying this book but the addition of Harley Quinn and her sexy/scary new look certainly make me intrigued.The second is preview pages from the next issue of Fear Itself. If you follow comics, you know Steve Rogers is coming back to the suit but this image sets me over the edge. Crazy excited to see what happens next.

With all the jazz going on about the neked poster for the American version (look it up if you want. It's not too bad on the eyes), I decided I wanted to finally get to watching the original version. With six months until it opens, I figure I've got good time to kinda forget the little things and maybe still be surprised.Dragon Tattoo tells the story of a journalist who, after being found of libel, has six months before serving his "jail" time (that place looked nothing like any prison I've seen) and is hired to find a murderer. Forty years prior, a 16-year old girl went missing and her Uncle still believes one of the family responsible of foul play. As the man begins looking, he starts getting help from a hacker who has been following his case from his own computer. They soon team-up and try to solve a case nobody has been able to do.I will start by giving this movie maybe one of the biggest compliments I can: it made me want to read the book. I would probably never actually finish it cuz I'm a bit slow like that but I want to try. There was great suspense, a pretty thought out mystery plot and a hot chick who takes her shirt off a few times. Noomi Rapace is super hot and for some reason, those spikes and piercings make her even hotter. Even though she really only had one really badass moment, I still wouldn't want to meet her in a dark alley. Hopefully she will also be hot in the Sherlock Holmes sequel, Game of Shadows.Long story longer, this movie was pretty damned cool and it's gotten me a lot more stoked for the remake. If ya get 2 1/2 hours, check this movie out. Definitely worth it.

Wednesday, June 8, 2011

Ultimate Spider-Man #159 - Death of Spider-Man: part 4 of 5With Iceman, Torch & Goblin all down, Spidey, while bleeding out from being shot by Punisher, still has the bravado to run home to take on the "Sinister Six" as they tear apart the neighborhood looking for him. With barely being able to move and Electro around, Pete plays it smart and opens the fire hydrant to dowse them all. As he tries for a quick breather, he finally notices all the people gathering around him, seeing him without his mask, as he asks for someone to call for help. As any comic fan knows, no villain is ever done and Sandman comes back at him, followed by Vulture. Spider-Man is getting his ass handed to him. We cut to May and Gwen driving away as May gets a call. It's a neighbor making sure she wasn't in the house that just got demolished and telling her that she thinks Pete is Spider-Man and that she thinks these bad guys are killing him, making May swerve the car around. Back to Spidey as he keeps getting the snot beat outta him, Electro cuts through Sandman, claiming with Goblin out of commission, he gets the kill. With one last mocking speech from Pete, Electro is about to strike when a gun goes off, shooting him in the chest. One more shot goes off and he charges out, taking whatever villains were left with him. To his surprise and liking, Pete looks up to find Aunt May holding the smoking gun (making her quite possibly the coolest chick in the Ultimate Universe!). As he collapses into her arms and begins fading out, we are left with the last two-page spread of the Green Goblin rising above both May and Pete.I still hold to the theory that Pete just gives up being Spider-Man. With everybody and their dog seeing who Spider-Man really is and all the danger he claims he has put May and the family in, it looks like he'll just hang up the tights but that doesn't detract from the story at all. You feel like this has become a "last stand" for him. His "do or die" moment. Bendis has done an amazing job of making a Spider-Man that is relevant and very human and even though you want him to live, you really don't care what happens because you know it will be a defining hero moment for him. This series has been amazing from issue one and it only gets better.Here's to hoping that the last issue doesn't end up being late.(And check out the badass variant cover by Frank Cho! Dude has mucho talent)

Monday, June 6, 2011

DC has been revealing the books and creative teams behind them with this new "reboot" (DC claims it's not a reboot, it's a new DCU...). Here are some that stick out more for me.

Wonder WomanAll that was said about this was pretty much the team of Brian Azzarello and Cliff Chiang but that is all I need to know I'm on board. Azzarello is the amazing writer of 100 Bullets (one of the best, overall series Vertigo has ever done), the Joker graphic novel and Lex Luthor: Man of Steel. The dude writes dark and gritty and I'm real excited to see what he brings to Wonder Woman and the Amazons. Should be great stuff.

The Savage HawkmanBatman writer Tony Daniel takes on Carter Hall along with artist Philip Tan. Tan's art on Hawkman will probably be amazing but I'm more intrigued by the fact that the description seems to imply that this character in completely starting over. Others just sound like new story but this one sounds like an origin. Could be interesting to see what, if anything, is changed if it is.

Green Lantern booksJohns is still on Green Lantern with Doug Mahnke and it's staring Hal Jordan. I'm there.Peter J Tomasi is coming back onto GL Corps with artist Fernando Pasarin and it's got Guy and Stewart leading an "elite Green Lantern strike force to keep the peace". Could be pretty awesome and I love Tomasi. Thumbs up.GL: The New Guardians is Kyle leading a "team" consisting of a member of each Lantern faction. Again, could be pretty cool but it's written by Tony Bedard and I am not a fan of his Lantern stuff up to this point so I may end up skipping it. Bummer.Red Lanterns is written by Peter Milligan with art by Ed Benes. "Atrocitus and his Red Lantern Corps return in their own series, battling against injustice in the most bloody ways imaginable. This Lantern Corps takes no prisoners, they are judge, jury and executioners!". They had me sold at Ed Benes on art.

Red Hood and the OutsidersJason Todd is Red Hood once again and he has a little team of "antiheroes" to join him. It's written by Scott Lobdell with art by Kenneth Rocafort. I loved Lobdell on X-Men back in the day so that helps sell it and Rocafort's art is very unique and cool but I love what has mostly been done with Todd since his return. Put him in charge of Arsenal and Starfire, and it just peaks my interest even more. However, Arsenal appears to have both his arms, even though he lost one in Cry for Justice the other year. Again, we'll see what kinda changes Flashpoint brings and to whom.

There has been a lot of books and some may be great. Most will probably be duds but with "new direction" behind all of them, who actually knows what may or may not be a good read. Here's all the other titles they have announced, followed by writers and artists.Justice League of America by Geoff Johns and Jim LeeAquaman by Geoff Johns and Ivan ReisThe Flash written and drawn by Francis ManapulThe Fury of Firestorm co-written by Ethan Van Sciver and Gail Simone and art by Yildiray CinarGreen Arrow by JT Krul and Dan JurgensJustice League International by Dan Jurgens and Aaron LoprestiMr. Terrific by Eric Wallace and Roger RobinsonCaptain Atom by JT Krul and Freddie Williams IIDC Universe with each story being by different writers and artistsBatwing by Judd Winick and Ben OliverNightwing by Kyle Higgins and Eddy BarrowsBatgirl (Barbara Gordan) by Gail Simone and Ardian Syaf & Vicente CifuentesBatwoman by JH Williams III, Haden Blackman and Amy ReederCatwoman by Judd Winick and Guillem MarchBirds of Prey by Duane Swierczynski and Jesus SaizBatman by Scott Snyder and Greg CapulloDetective Comics written and drawn by Tony DanielBatman and Robin by Peter Tomasi and Patrick GleasonThe Dark Knight by David Finch w/ Jay FabokBatman Inc by Grant Morrison and Chris Burnham

Saturday, June 4, 2011

Jennifer LawrenceAs much as I didn't think she was the greatest part of First Class, I couldn't help but fall in love with Miss Lawrence. Gorgeous. And best of all, she has a real body. Meat on them bones and amazing curves and nothing said it better than her dress at the last Oscars. This may not be the best picture of it, but damn if those curves aren't getting me all tingly again. Her lawyer may have to watch out cuz somebody plans on getting a restraining order while delivering her invitation to the club.

Friday, June 3, 2011

I saw that Adam posted about this movie. While I agree with most things that he said, I have one big difference: I absolutely would categorize this as a first class movie.I think at this point, most know the plot of the movie so I will just skip those details. This movie was quite brilliant in it's connection to American history and in making the mutants more "human". I felt like this may have been the best x-movie to make that connection with these characters as opposed to just super-powered beings who want to fit in. There's a scene where all the new recruits/students sit around trying to pick code names now that they technically work for the CIA. As they are all still teenagers and/or young 20-somethings, this could have easily been a botched effort, coming out more like a Twilight scene than anything. Vaughn crafted it perfectly. These are how kids would talk in this situation. This is how people would react. This is the most "human" these "mutants" have been portrayed and a huge portion of that falls on the acting.James McAvoy and Michael Fassbender were perfect as Xavier and Erik, with Fassbender probably turning in the best performance. Kevin Bacon also stood out, as I have never been a fan of his. I can name the movies of his I have seen on one hand and still be able to eat dinner with it. I found him to have just the right amount of villain cliche mixed with ruthless, world-dominating evil. Worst out of the bunch for me was Jennifer Lawrence and she wasn't even bad. I found her character (much like that of Emma Frost) just a bit underdeveloped. There were there and they were given parts but they didn't feel like they were anything too important. But I even liked them. It was a very well-rounded cast for me and I can't think of any other actors who would have done better (admittedly, I have not put much though into either).Overall, I was quite amazed by this movie. With such low expectations due to Last Stand and Wolverine, I freely admit to being blown away. I put it second in the x-franchise to only X2 and I'm willing to let that set in and change if need. Once again, the comic movies of the summer are amazing and I can only imagine what Lantern and Cap are gonna do for me.

Wednesday, June 1, 2011

I heard this song on kbear the other day and it's been stuck in my head ever since. I had no idea of the song's title or the band. To my surprise, I found out today that it was Sick by Adelitas Way. I bought their first album because of the awesome song Invincible but the rest of the cd wasn't all that great. I'm hoping this badass tune is a good sign of their next album (and yes, I know he looks like a cho-mo. I have that habit of liking bands that look like that)

Uncanny X-Force #11 - The Dark Angel Saga: Chapter 1This week was another tough one for me. There were a few issues that I found rather great for their own specific spots but this one was probably the best over-all issue.Issue ten dropped a pretty big bomb on us and their member Archangel when we all found out that he has been "turning to the dark side" more because of the death of Apocalypse: without him, his once Horseman of Death has been chosen as the successor to his throne. Force must go to the one Apocalypse expert they know of, Dark Beast (from the original Age of Apocalypse stories), for answers and they find out they will need something called the Life Seed in order to restore the mind that they love. The only place Dark Beast knows of with one? The Age of Apocalypse universe, obviously.Issue 11 starts with the team in DB's lair as he jumps into the alternate reality with them, saying they have three hours before the portal closes. Page two has Deadpool saying,"A time limit? No way that goes sideways on us. Ten bucks says this is a stupid idea. Anyone?"Which really just tells you exactly how this book is going. As they quickly find their way to DB's old lair and find the Life Seed, they are surprised by the AoA's Nightcrawler who just as quickly takes it from them. AoA Sabretooth and Wild Child tussle with Wolverine while Psylock is able to slow things down after her and Sabretooth see each other (both were part of the dimension-jumping team Exiles for a while and know each other). AoA Sunfire, unwilling to take any chances on them and anything that Dark Beast wants, pops in and destroys the Seed. DB decides that's as good of a time as any to bolt, leaving Force stuck in the AoA. We close the issue as Sabretooth and his team take them to their leader and Wolverine is shocked to find Magneto along with Jean Grey (whom was involved with her Wolverine in the original AoA).I've said it before and I'll say it again: Rick Remender is writing one of the best books out there. His dialogue is amazing. I laughed aloud a few times in this issue alone. From Deadpool actually being funny to Fantomex calling himself a jerk (which is much funnier than I make it sound). Remender is gritty and honest and hilarious in his writing and those aren't traits that a lot of writers have.And Mark Brooks' art looked amazing. Usually a bit cartoony for my liking on "darker" books like these, the colors and shading make it look great. Definitely changes the tone of his art to fit much better.Once again, if you are not reading this book, you need to be.

Honorable Mentions:Fear Itself #3 - With Steve coming back as Captain America, this issue appears to actually have killed off Bucky. Robot arm ripped off and stabbed through the chest, I personally don't believe he will die, though. Middle of the series and he's still in the Cap book, this will probably be used more as a set-up, if anything.Flashpoint #2 - Batman attempts to help Barry Allen get back his Flash powers back by mixing chemicals and having him struck by lightning again. The result? A chard corpse of Barry laying on the ground. Oops.Moon Knight #2 - MK's personalities are now those of Spider-Man, Wolverine and Captain America along with himself. Watching them bicker about who gets to control the body is pretty damned awesome.